Monday, November 9, 2009

Leerink Swann Upgrades New Merck's Stock to "Outperform"


The smallish Wall Street firm had Merck at "Market Perform" most recently. Here is the gist of the analysis, via StreetInsider.com:

. . . .A MEDACorp cholesterol survey (published today) suggests another leg down for Zetia/Vytorin in the U.S. from ARBITER 6, and headlines associated with a potential editorial from Steve Nissen may spark weakness in MRK shares, but we believe the current valuation already implies the loss of >50% of the cholesterol franchise, 100% of U.S. Temodar sales, and up to 30% of Remicade/ Simponi profits. Our industry contacts believe chances of a favorable settlement with JNJ are good and that Merial/Intervet FTC overlap may be overestimated and cost synergies underestimated. . . .

I guess we'll see -- but I am not certain that a bad ARBITER 6 outcome is fully-priced in, at $33 or so.

No comments: